I have read "Look to Windward"...fantastic but the two assassinations near the end of the book traumatised me.

Interesting interview with Neil Gaiman in the paper this morning (he's launching his new novel)...in which he mentioned Iain Banks and noted that people often said that he 'also wrote science fiction'...whereas Banks always thought his science fiction was his most important work.

The smoke wafted gently in the breeze across the poop deck and all seemed right in the world.

Iain Banks wrote a fantastic book about whisky called Raw Spirit - it is a guide to individual whiskies, whisky in general, stories about being drunk on whisky, but also quite autobiographical.

He discussed the bit in his career where he introduced the 'M' into the middle of his name, because his sci-fi (or skiffy as he referred to it) fans wanted more sci-fi, but the non-sci-fi fans wanted him to ditch it and just write normal books, for FSM sake. Walking on Glass is probably the book that most obviously has a foot in both camps.

"I don't mean to sound bitter, cynical or cruel; but I am, so that's how it comes out." ~ Bill Hicks."To argue with a person who has renounced reason is like administering medicine to the dead." ~ Thomas Paine."One should not believe everything one reads on the internet." ~ Abraham Lincoln."If you're making a political point wearing a balaclava, you're a c***. It was true for the IRA and it's true now." ~ daftbeaker.

Now I don't know whether to read The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole (builder of the gorgeous 'Strawberry Hill House' which is about a mile away from me and creator of 'Strawberry Hill Gothic') or read another I A Banks.

The smoke wafted gently in the breeze across the poop deck and all seemed right in the world.

Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. I started by disliking it, then after a few pages I got hooked. A most unusual narrative style, conveying great events in a stream of small details. Also, here Thomas Cromwell is a decent bloke, which is different.

DavidH wrote:Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. I started by disliking it, then after a few pages I got hooked. A most unusual narrative style, conveying great events in a stream of small details. Also, here Thomas Cromwell is a decent bloke, which is different.

I might have a go at reading that...by modern accounts Thomas Cromwell was indeed a half decent chap who rose to the top from humble beginnings.

The smoke wafted gently in the breeze across the poop deck and all seemed right in the world.

Getting the Buggers to Behave by Sue Cowley. Some blindingly obvious bits, some rather good ideas and a lot of little tweaks that might have a big cumulative impact. I really don't want to open Learning to Teach in a Secondary School by Capel, Leask and Turner, it looks rather dull.

Julius Aurora II wrote:Bought Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman today. Looking forward to reading it. Just finished Pratchett's Thief of Time, one of my favorites by that dear genius.

I wasn't that keen on Neverwhere, I never really got into it. It felt a bit like someone had taken a Robert Rankin book and tried to make it serious.

American Gods, on the other hand, is absolutely brilliant.

That seems to point up a significant difference between Europeans and Americans. A European says: "I can't understand this, what's wrong with me?" An American says: "I can't understand this, what's wrong with him? - Sir Terry Pratchett

The great thing about Beaker is his ability to provoke while still being decorous, or at least within acceptable rules of conduct - Qwertyuiopasd

"How is it that hardly any major religion has looked at science and concluded, 'This is better than we thought! The Universe is much bigger than our prophets said, grander, more subtle, more elegant. God must be even greater than we dreamed'? Instead they say, 'No, no, no! My god is a little god, and I want him to stay that way.'" - Carl Sagan

"To doubt everything or to believe everything are two equally convenient solutions; both dispense with the necessity of reflection." - Henri Poincaré

daftbeaker wrote:Getting the Buggers to Behave by Sue Cowley. Some blindingly obvious bits, some rather good ideas and a lot of little tweaks that might have a big cumulative impact. I really don't want to open Learning to Teach in a Secondary School by Capel, Leask and Turner, it looks rather dull.

Julius Aurora II wrote:Bought Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman today. Looking forward to reading it. Just finished Pratchett's Thief of Time, one of my favorites by that dear genius.

I wasn't that keen on Neverwhere, I never really got into it. It felt a bit like someone had taken a Robert Rankin book and tried to make it serious.

American Gods, on the other hand, is absolutely brilliant.

I thought American gods was brilliant but I thought Neverwhere was better...I think it's the London Underground theme which I liked.

The smoke wafted gently in the breeze across the poop deck and all seemed right in the world.

daftbeaker wrote:Getting the Buggers to Behave by Sue Cowley. Some blindingly obvious bits, some rather good ideas and a lot of little tweaks that might have a big cumulative impact. I really don't want to open Learning to Teach in a Secondary School by Capel, Leask and Turner, it looks rather dull.

Julius Aurora II wrote:Bought Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman today. Looking forward to reading it. Just finished Pratchett's Thief of Time, one of my favorites by that dear genius.

I wasn't that keen on Neverwhere, I never really got into it. It felt a bit like someone had taken a Robert Rankin book and tried to make it serious.

American Gods, on the other hand, is absolutely brilliant.

I thought American gods was brilliant but I thought Neverwhere was better...I think it's the London Underground theme which I liked.

I don't know about better than American Gods, but i definitely enjoyed it. Nothing wrong with similarities to Robert Rankin either.

Strange but true, I've just finished reading To Kill A Mockingbird for the first time. I found it much more entertaining than I expected it to be, albeit highly predictable.

Now jumping into a re-reading of Dan Simmons' Hyperion quadrology.

"Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens."("Against stupidity, the gods themselves contend in vain.")-- Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805)Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away.-- Philip K DickOK, now let's look at four dimensions on the blackboard.-- Dr. JoyEnglish isn't much of a language for swearing. When I studied Ancient Greek I was delighted to discover a single word - Rhaphanidosthai - which translates roughly as "Be thou thrust up the fundament with a radish for adultery."